Two Killed In Anambra Communal Clash •School, 11 buildings razed
On June 26, 2011 · In News

BY Vincent Ujumadu
AWKA — Soldiers and heavily armed policemen have been deployed to the village of Nkputu, Owerre Ezulaka in Orumba South Local Government Area of Anambra State, following last Thursday’s killing of two persons in the renewed clash between the community and its Awuka, Ogbunka, neighbours.

Several persons were also injured in the violent clash that left, at least, eight houses burnt.

The two communities have been fighting over a piece of land that separates them since 1987.

Vanguard gathered, yesterday, that the villagers abandoned their homes following the presence of soldiers and fierce-looking mobile policemen.

During last week’s clash, part of Owerre Ezukala Boy’s Secondary School was burnt and the principal’s office looted, while members of the National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, serving in the school were chased out of their rooms.

Caretaker Committee Chairman of Owerre Ezulaka Town Union, Mr. Alphonsus Ikegwu, who came out of hiding to address newsmen in Awka, said his people had been at the receiving end since the crisis began.

He said: “We have been intimidated, harassed and killed by the people of Ogbunka because we must pass through their town to get to our town. The other option is to come home through either Imo State or Abia State.

“Most of our people have not been able to visit our village for the past three months since the people of Ogunka renewed their attacks.
“They went as far as digging illegal bumps where they stop, harass and intimidate us.”

He said his community had petitioned the state Commissioner of Police, the Area Command and the Divisional Police Officer for the area over several attacks on his people.

He also said the matter had been brought to the attention of the state government, explaining that the governor directed earlier that both parties should keep away from the disputed land.

Ikegwu appealed to law enforcement agents to ensure the protection of their lives and property, while appealing to the state government to set up a body to look into the matter and find a lasting solution.

“What is happening has gone beyond normal boundary dispute. It is now sheer hatred that is being sponsored by some people we already mentioned in our petition to the police. We want them to investigate the matter to find out who supplies the arms they are using against our people.

“The annoying part of the whole crisis was the arrest of our people who were running for their dear lives and were accosted by the police who came to make peace. We are entitled to our lives and property, but as it stands, we are not sure of our lives any longer.

“Our people are law abiding citizens. We have grown above this level of criminality and we cannot descend to the level of marching force with force.

“We have resorted to tactical diplomacy because we know that we must pass through their town and so, it is not to our own benefit to retaliate,” Ikegwu said.

He explained that when his administration was inaugurated by the state government, they were mandated to settle the problem between the two communities and prepare the ground for election in his town, regretting that the people of Ogbunka had been a stumbling block to peaceful resolution of the crisis.

The deputy governor, he also said, had visited the communities and advised on the need to maintain peace, noting, however, that the directives were not enough to stop the attack on his people by their neighbours.

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Written by Okodili Ndidi, Onitsha Saturday, 25 June 2011

The lingering communal crisis that has bedeviled the Owerre Ezukala and Ogbunka communities in Orumba South Local Government Area of Anambra State, on Friday, took a dangerous dimension when two persons were killed and about 11 houses burnt.

Briefing newsmen on the incident, the caretaker committee chairman of the Owerre Ezekala Improvement Union, Mr. Alphonsus Ikegwu, lamented that the people of the community have been living in fear occasioned by continuous invasion of the community by hoodlums from Egbunka who have intimidated, harassed and raped their women, adding that all efforts to bring the attention of government to the predicament of the people was yet to yield any result.

According to him, the two communities, which share ancestral ties, have been on warpath for more than three decades over boundary adjustments with Egbunka laying claim to the sole ownership of a stone quarry site located between the two communities.

Ikegwu, who disclosed that most indigenes of Owerre Ezukala could no longer visit their village for fear of being kidnapped or killed as the only road to the village is through Egbunka village, maintained that their plea was for government to mobilise security personnel to maintain law and order and ensure security of lives and property. He added that they are law-abiding and cannot take up arms in self-defense.

The visibly shaken community leader insisted that government has not done enough to restore peace and order in the crisis-torn communities, stressing that all pleas and letters to Anambra State governor, the state Commissioner of Police and other relevant authorities had not been given the seriousness it deserved.

The two communities have been fighting over a piece of land that separates them since 1987.

Got to be kidding me!

Where is the source of this story?

Idiotts. Obi the gov should make prosecuting these ppl a top priority. We really need a hate crime bill that should be enforced. Bullet to the head if found guilty.

Ife and Modakeke in Igboland? lol

udezue:

Idiotts. Obi the gov should make prosecuting these ppl a top priority. We really need a hate crime bill that should be enforced. Bullet to the head if found guilty.

Isnt it already?

So what is Obi's top priority as we type?